UYE: Vino Volo Tysons Opening Reception

What a wonderful event! I will definitely be frequenting this place for quiet date nights with Jolly, as well as low key girls nights and happy hours. We got to sample about 10 different wines and although I am partial to the medium bodies semi sweet reds, I enjoyed tasting all of the different types of wine that were offered.
It took us awhile to realize that this event was not Unilocal exclusive — boy did we feel special!!! Thank you Gretchen for including me & Jolly for this. You would have been so proud of how well behaved and sophisticated we were… until we attempted to get creative with our pictures towards the end of the event and realized how uncoordinated 6 adult Unilocalers could be!
I didn’t get to eat everything since I was busy focusing on the wine and our Unilocal table but the items that I did try were AMAZING!!! Small portions but packed full of flavor. The meatballs and truffle popcorn were really good!

I enjoyed Vino Volo’s opening reception so much! The food was fantastic, the wine poured freely, and the music was the right level of loud. The servers were friendly (and surprisingly knowledgeable for a restaurant that hadn’t yet opened), too! I think the space is well-​decorated, the food was phenomenal, and the wine selection is large and varied. I will definitely be back to a Vino Volo soon!

So, I have to admit that I kinda felt like a lost child when I walked in and I didn’t see Gretchen. But, I guess that’s just cause I missed her bubbly and welcoming personality! I didn’t realize that this opening was not exclusive to Unilocalers so I was super confused at first.
Then, I found the wine table… and of course, life made sense again. Also, it helped to bump into a few other orphaned Unilocal elites. Vino Volo offered two wine flights (one red and one white) and also flew in a Cali winemaker who was sharing a few of his wines as well. The staff were all super knowledgeable about the wines and were happy to pour a taste or two.
They also served a lot of fancy snacks to munch on. Love me some cheese & charcuterie boards! Mmm… mmm…good. Also, the pizza/​flatbread slices and the lamb meatballs were delicious. I wish there was a little bit more variety of food… just because for a lightweight like me to taste all of the different wines offered, I needed a little bit more substance in my stomach to help. Haha.
It was great to finally get an idea of what was served at Vino Volo since I’ve seen their store at the airport before, but never had a chance to stop in. Seems like a nice upclass way to meet up with a friend.

This was my very first Unilocal event… and how unworthy I am! Before reading a few of these reviews, I didn’t realize how very exclusive this event was. And little ol’ me got to attend? :O I feel so grateful and privileged… thank you Gretchen for planning such an enjoyable and fun evening for all of us!
The staff that night was super friendly and accommodating. The gentlemen pouring the wines were very knowledgeable and fun to talk to. One of the lovely ladies there also helped my friends and me take a goofy picture for the Instagram contest. Trying to link drinking arms with 6 people while sipping wine is pretty difficult! You can imagine her having to be quite patient with us. (Btw awesome pic idea, Jennifer M.)
I tried a few of their apps and they were all delish. The salmon crostini and lamb meatballs were my favorites! And I couldn’t stop eating their truffle popcorn (psst…it’s better than Chef Geoff’s).
The décor was elegant and sophisticated and… sexy even? I remember brick walls, dark wood, a fairly large bar, and gorgeous shelves of wine bottles and boxes. The area towards the back with the cushioned seats was also very cute. The atmosphere is not stuffy but quite relaxed actually and I can’t wait to come back for another fancy-​but-​laid-​back night =)

I love wine (discovering new wines, especially) and food, so I was super excited to get into this event. Like others have mentioned, I was pretty surprised to arrive to see that this wasn’t strictly a Unilocal event, but that others were invited — and I felt even more lucky.
The event itself was really great. I’ll admit, I was planning on having a late dinner so I didn’t sample a TON of the food, but what I did have — lamb meatballs, the sage-​infused cheese, the seasoned almonds, and truffle popcorn — were great. The lamb meatballs could have used a bit more seasoning but I really enjoyed pairing the cheese with the chutney on a piece of bread and. As for the wine — they were sampling 6 wines — 3 reds and 3 whites, and John from Bonneau wines was there featuring his Egrat portfolio. The staff pouring the wines were knowledgeable and friendly. Without a doubt, his wines were my favorites of the evening (although I also really enjoyed the Malbec) and I really enjoyed meeting him and learning about his winery. Of John’s wines, the Cabernet really blew me away — it was smooth, light, with just the hint of vanilla on the finish. He was also featuring a Syrah and Chardonnay, and I walked away with a bottle of each (they were featuring deep discounts, and the wines were really reasonable to begin with).
Looking over the menu once the place opens, I am excited to try the truffled penne, seared beef, and salsiccia pizza.
Thanks for getting me into a great event, Unilocal

What a nice event that was at this newly opening SFO headquartered Vino Volo! I was already somewhat familiar to Vino Volo because the two locations I had been to at Dulles Airport, but I really like this Tysons location for its spaciousness and more relaxing interior design. Like Eric said in his review, I was also surprised that it was not a Unilocal exclusive event. When I was getting my first glass from their staff, I was asked, «So what brought you here tonight?’ that is when I noticed that it was not a Unilocal event but a pre-​opening event inviting their VIP customers, press people, etc. I think that made us limited number of Unilocalers feel kinda special. «THANK YOU SO MUCH, GRETCHEN! BUT WE MISSED YOU!!!»
Vino Volo was nice to prepare so many kinds of amuse bouche and enough for everyone to taste together with wine. «THANK YOU!»
Amuse bouche was nice, but definitely not their main actors at all. It is the wine of course and that is perfectly okay with me.
Overall, in my opinion, it was a a little bit more sophisticated, exclusive, luxurious yet relaxing and fun event. Nice to meet two new Unilocal friends, Valentina D., Jeong L. and it was nice to almost meet a nicely dressed Chinese (?) lady who asked me if I was leaving on my way out. :)

I was surprised to see that the opening reception was for other groups aside from Unilocal.I guess I should feel lucky I got picked!
Fun event, the people who were serving the wine were very knowledgeable and answered any questions people had. There was also plenty of wine to go around and I probably drank at least a bottle or two by the end of the event.
There was also quite a bit of food being sampled. I really enjoyed the chicken lettuce wraps, meatballs, cured meats, cheeses, and margarita pizza. The live jazz band was also great as well.
It was also fun meeting some new Unilocalers (Valentina, Jason C, Jeong L, Amanda) and familiar (Albert L)
Vino Volo is an excellent addition to the Galleria and look forward to coming back!

I felt very very privileged that I was invited to this event. The unassuming «me» had no idea that the selected were far and few (fewer than 10).
I sampled quite a large number of offerings from cheese, cuts of dried meat, asparagus, smoked salmon rolls, and pizza, all of which were great pairings that went with the wine samples.
For the wine, we sampled 3 whites (New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, a California Chardonnay, and a Pinot Grigio). For the reds I sampled a Temperanillo/​Granache blend, an Argentinian Malbec, and another Temperanillo blend. The person giving us the samples was very knowledgeable and gave generous portions (I must have drank more than a bottle) which made for a great happy hour evening on a weekday. The prices of each of these bottles ranged from $ 21-​$ 28 and were a good value for the selection.
I was able to have a wonderful experience mingling with crowds from many different groups for the opening reception of Vino Volo and had a great time meeting new Unilocalers (Valentina, Amanda, Eric and Albert). It was great having live Jazz music and I enjoyed the great service that the staff members provided. We wish Vino Volo our blessings for success at Tyson’s!

So awesome! I live not even five minutes away from here, so I was thrilled that I was able to check the place out before it even opened! Although I am a frequent traveler and airport connoisseur, I have never been to a Vino Volo prior to this event.
The servers were awesome — they traveled near and far for the opening and all had interesting stories to share. And we all shared one thing in common — a deep love and passion for wine!
There were three reds and three whites to sample, and the samples were quite generous. There were hors d’oeuvres passed around, and were eaten almost as soon as they hit the table. I was surprised by how cool the décor was — taking pictures here will be no problem!
I will definitley be back in the future to experience more delicious wine.

I was sooo happy that I was able to come to this event — this is a new location of Vino Volo, located in Tysons Galleria, next to Corner Bakery. Everyone seemed to be all gussied up for this even, so I thought I was a little undressed (considering I just came from work!). There were samplings of the place’s wine (there were 2 flights available — one for reds, and one for whites; apparently, this place has 10 different flights that people can try), delicious bites (Smoked Salmon Rolls (smoked salmon over crème fraîche and crabmeat blend over crostini with cracked pepper and caper berries); Pizzetta; a platter of cheeses and nice jams; salumi and other cured meats; bowl of House Olives; Truffle Popcorn; Marcona Almonds (my favorite, roasted with rosemary and sea salt); Roasted Bone Marrow and Chicken Pâté (?); grilled asparagus with some prosciutto; bib lettuce with some chicken; and, lamb meatballs), and some live music to sashay to. I really enjoyed the salami, the Marcona nuts, and the variety of cheeses with jam. It was great to see fellow Unilocalers, even though there were a very limited amount (quite exclusive!). The staff were very friendly, and this wine bar is a cute swanky addition to Tysons Galleria.
+VIP entry
+Smoked Salmon Rolls
+House Olives
+Marcona Almonds
+friendly staff: D

What a fun event! The folks serving the wine were very well educated, and included at least one person who went to sommelier school. I learned a lot from him, including the difference between Californian (fruity) and Argentinean (earthy) Malbecs.
I was amused when a woman asked if she could buy a glass of wine, and received the response, «Of course not — you can have a glass, but everything is free tonight!»
The foods were yummy, but left me wishing for more since the servings were so small — a small margarita pizza topped with fresh basil, 5 meatballs on a plate, lettuce-​chicken wraps, and the expected nuts, cheeses, and jams.
I also got a chance to meet the (self-​taught) chef, and hear the interesting stories about how he worked at Google and Facebook, and got into cooking by paying his friends back by making delicious meals for them. What a great story!

Vino Volo I learned was originally started at airports such as Dulles, BWI, JFK, etc. Then the owner moved into making locations into Bethesda and now into Tyson’s. The Tyson’s location is excellent addition to the galleria and I will be sure it will blossom into a booming business in no time.
The event itself consisted of trying 3 different whites and 3 different red wines. I was able to enjoy some delicious eats. Some of the samplings included: marcona almonds, truffle popcorn, meatballs, variety of meats & cheeses, etc.
The staff was incredible in making sure that everyone feels comfortable. I will say that Jonathan who poured the reds in the main area was very knowledgeable and super friendly. He had encouraged me to give a red another try and when I did it turned out it was on one of my favorite. Who would have thought that?